A man honoured for heroism during Vancouver’s Stanley Cup riot plans to protest outside of city hall on Friday against police charges at recent Cannabis Day celebrations.

Bert Easterbrook was given a certificate of merit in 2013 for stopping rioters from flipping over a truck two years earlier.

He was also one of three people charged with obstruction after they tried to stop police from arresting a man for trafficking at the annual Cannabis Day event in the city’s downtown on Wednesday.

Easterbrook says he will put his framed certificate and pennant in a metal bucket and light them on fire outside city hall, a decision that Vancouver police Constable Brian Montague called unfortunate.

VANCOUVER — A man arrested at a Vancouver pot protest on Canada Day is vowing to burn an award he received for his heroism during the Stanley Cup riot.

The Vancouver Police Department honoured Bert Easterbrook in 2013 with a certificate of merit — the highest award for civilian bravery — for stopping rioters from flipping over a truck two years earlier.

On Wednesday, he and two others were charged with obstruction after they tried to stop police from arresting a man for trafficking at the annual Cannabis Day event.

Easterbrook said he will put his framed certificate and pennant in a metal bucket and light them on fire outside city hall on Friday. In a 2013 police document, his actions during the riot are described as “selfless” and “decisive.”

Police said they had to intervene at Wednesday’s protest because a man ignored a warning to stop selling pot to minors. Easterbrook and several others used a so-called “hug power” technique, embracing the man to block police.

Neil Magnuson identified himself as the man charged with trafficking. He said he didn’t sell to anyone he thought was under 17.

Magnuson said an officer warned him to stop selling but never mentioned youth. He refused to stop, but hadn’t sold any more marijuana by the time he was arrested, he said.

During the arrest, officers kneed him in the back, twisted his arm and nearly caused him to lose consciousness, he alleged.